Tech trends, tips, and thought leadership - straight from the IT frontlines
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The top 8 cloud and connectivity trends to know today
Written By
Darren Hogan
Director of Portfolio
Published at
26 November 2024
- Cloud
Virtual Clinic 101: Find the answers you need for your practice
Do you know what the average waiting time is at the emergency department at Royal Victoria Hospital? 224 minutes. Do you know what the average waiting time in a virtual clinic is? No, we didn’t think so.
Nasstar
Content Team
How to make the most of your virtual meeting rooms
Virtual meeting rooms have fast become the most important tool in our IT stacks. In fact, Microsoft says 2.7 billion meeting minutes happen per day on its virtual meeting services.
- Microsoft
Quick start for Microsoft Teams Governance
When you’ve defined (and documented) your Microsoft Teams governance principles, you’ll be looking for a quick start for your governance process.
Nasstar
Content Team
What is the future of virtual consultations?
The last 12 months have taught medical practitioners and video conferencing providers alike a great deal about consultations.
Cloud technology in the UK’s police forces
Just like many other industries, the UK’s Police Forces have undertaken a significant digital transformation over the last few years with an increase in the use of mobile technologies, data, devices, and analytics.
- Digital transformation
Attend Anywhere vs OneConsultation
If you’re evaluating Attend Anywhere and looking for alternatives, you’ve come to the right place. There’s no marketing patter here, and we’ve not made it so technical that you read it and still have no idea what the differences are.
Telemedicine: The complete guide for 2021
How many times have you heard the phrase the world has changed?
- Cloud
5 ways video interview software helps police forces
Video interview software has been helping businesses communicate with colleagues, recruitment candidates, and sources for decades.
Nasstar
Content Team
Virtual Consultations: Everything you need to know
Virtual consultations provide an alternative to in-person consultations for all aspects of the healthcare industry.As the working world has gone remote, it’s important for healthcare providers to move this way too. By offering virtual consultations, you can see more patients, save time in your working day, and discover countless tangible benefits you didn’t know existed.
Keep your contact centre agents motivated working from home
If you’re new to running a contact centre from home, you might be up against new challenges. One that we get asked more often than not is “How do I keep my call centre agents motivated when working from home?”
- Contact centre
How to find the best call centre software for your business
When looking for the best call centre for your business, there’s a minefield of new information, providers, and jargon to understand.
Nasstar
Content Team
How to measure Microsoft Teams productivity
Whether your teams are working from home for the first time or you’re a mature Microsoft house, measuring Microsoft Teams productivity has been tricky since inception.
Microsoft FastTrack: A guide for every IT admin
This blog walks through how Microsoft FastTrack partners assist by providing free remote support and guidance.
Microsoft Teams file management: getting it right
Microsoft Teams file management is integral to the smooth running of collaboration in your business.
- Microsoft
Top 15 Microsoft Teams accessibility features
Microsoft Teams has countless features that are constantly updated.
Nasstar
Content Team
- Microsoft
Microsoft Teams management tools to make your life easier
Microsoft Teams service management can be as simple or as complex as you make it.
Nasstar
Content Team
- Microsoft
Microsoft Teams call quality – how to ensure the best experience
Let’s talk about Microsoft Teams call quality issues.
Over 50,000 online consultations conducted by CNTW NHS Foundation Trust since start of pandemic
Nasstar* is pleased to announce that it has helped deliver over 50,000 online consultations for patients and service users at one of the largest NHS Trusts in England.
Video shopping: Should my business offer it?
Traditional retail has nose-dived since 2010 thanks to online shopping offerings.
How Microsoft Teams for frontline workers empowers your entire business
Amongst the hustle and bustle of new remote workers, there’s a huge portion of the collaboration market that has almost passed vendors by.
- Microsoft
10 Microsoft Teams certified devices and what happens when users go rogue
You’ve probably heard about Microsoft Teams certified devices.
- Microsoft
Microsoft Teams voice options to unify your communications stack
Incorporating voice, or phone, into Microsoft Teams is a crucial step towards genuinely unifying communications in your business.
Nasstar
Content Team
- Microsoft
Microsoft Teams network assessment: troubleshooting tips and tools
This blog has been expertly reviewed by Peter Vasey, Director of Modern Work at Nasstar.
- Microsoft
10 best Microsoft Teams automations to increase efficiency
Automation in Microsoft Teams help you move from repeating mundane tasks to efficient and repeatable automated processes that need a one-time setup.
Nasstar launches new partner division
Nasstar is pleased to announce the launch of Nasstar Channel: a new standalone division dedicated to the success of its 600 partners.
How to keep your business secure in a hybrid workforce
Adapting to the demands of our new hybrid workforce introduces different ways of working.
What are the advantages of using a cloud orchestration platform?
With over 83% of enterprise software now running in cloud environments, finding a niche advantage can make you stand out from the crowd.
Comms Vision 2021
Nasstar are excited to be a sponsor of the Comms Vision 2021 event, taking place from the 10-12 November 2021 at The Gleneagles Hotel in Scotland.
Nasstar practice lead Jason Oliver awarded AWS Ambassador status
Nasstar is pleased to announce that Jason Oliver has been selected by Amazon Web Services (AWS) to join its prestigious AWS ambassador program.
How to manage your managed IT services provider
So, you’ve chosen the managed IT services provider who promises to take the pressure off you and your IT department.
- Digital transformation
Building operational excellence
For our latest MSP audit, AWS raised the bar on Next-Generation Monitoring Capabilities. The topic discussed in this post is an excellent example of how the MSP programme should operate, continually challenging its partners and driving customer quality through implementing its latest services and best practices.
- Managed IT
The big benefits of managed I.T. for small businesses
Most small businesses don’t grow their own coffee beans to use in the staff kitchen. Yet many still manage their own IT. But there is an alternative.
What is infrastructure management?
The term “infrastructure management” applies to many different industries, but in the context of IT, it refers to the hardware, software, on-premise servers, networks and other systems essential for delivering IT services.
- Cloud
Are cloud services safe?
Many businesses are realising the benefits of cloud services when it comes to enhancing their IT systems. After all, the cloud offers a cost-effective and reliable IT solution that supports growth and business development. But like any technology, there are always going to be questions around safety and security.
Nasstar
Content Team
- Secure networks
SaaS vs. cloud services
Software as a Service (SaaS) and cloud services are often used interchangeably. In this blog, we’ll define each term and compare the two to provide you with a full understanding of each.
Nasstar
Content Team
- Microsoft
8 Microsoft Teams governance best practices
As you roll out more users, have more meetings, and create more teams, you can find yourself overwhelmed with Microsoft Teams.
Nasstar
Content Team
- Cloud
Building a cloud-native intelligent character recognition solution
We ran a test and found that the Amazon Textract service is a well-rounded intelligent character recognition (ICR), but it requires a lot of custom code to implement an overall solution to meet common business needs.
Why we need to talk about sustainable cloud
Sustainability is an important topic for everyone, especially those in the technology space whose products and services can potentially have a big impact on the environment.
Jason Oliver
Senior Solution Architect & AWS Ambassador
The 10 key questions you should ask a managed IT service provider
Are you looking for a managed IT service provider to help ensure your business continuity? Then here are the 10 questions you really need to ask them. If a prospective provider’s answers satisfy you that they can meet the service levels your business needs… it looks like you’ve found your perfect match.
How cyber security is different from information security
Often used interchangeably, you’d be forgiven for thinking that cyber security and information security were the same.
The Nasstar guide to unified threat management
Unified threat management, otherwise known as UTM, is a term that refers to one safety solution and generally to a single security device that offers various security functions at one point in the network.
- Cyber security
10 network security threats and the threat defences to protect you
If you’ve been tasked with tightening up your network security, threat defence is the right place to start.
Nasstar
Content Team
How to implement a zero trust model when working with partners
When working with partners, implementing a zero trust model sounds like a great idea for your internal IT teams but an awkward scenario for your partners.
Microsoft Teams integration with Cisco video conferencing
If you’re in the situation where you’re using Microsoft Teams meetings at home but have Cisco video conferencing devices in the office, you’re probably looking for a way to make these work together.
- Cyber security
Role-based access control: A complete overview
Role-based access control grants and restricts networks access within a specific company. Often seen in large organisations, this is a vital security component being rolled out across the board.
Nasstar
Content Team
The remote desktop – hosted or virtual?
At home, on the train, in a car in a layby, someone is tapping away at their laptop or tablet keyboard.
Choosing your hosted desktop provider – the 3 key questions
Moving to hosted desktops is a key decision for any organisation. Done right, it should help you to achieve greater efficiency, productivity, security and sustainability now and for the long term.
Your hosted desktop – would you share it?
Businesses are discovering the benefits of virtual machines running familiar operating systems: otherwise known as hosted desktops.
Nasstar's Shane Brighton named in the top 10 biggest influencers in cloud computing
Nasstar is pleased to announce that our Customer Solutions Architect, Shane Brighton, has been named in the top 10 biggest influencers in cloud computing in 2021.
Why cyber security is important for businesses
Cyber security is extremely important for businesses and should be high on the agenda for several reasons, namely because it protects your business from the ever-growing number of cyber attacks happening every day.
Nasstar completes acquisition of KCOM National ICT services business
Nasstar is pleased to announce it has completed the acquisition of the National ICT services business of KCOM.
- Cloud
The hosted desktop – and its host of benefits
Changing from a physical to a virtual desktop is a move many businesses are considering.
Nasstar
Content Team
Nasstar is recognised as a finalist at Microsoft Partner of the Year 2021
Nasstar* today announced it has been named a finalist of Modern Workplace & Security - Meetings, Calling and Devices for Microsoft Teams at the Microsoft Partner of the Year Awards.
What is cyber security all about?
In 1971, the first computer virus was created. Named the ‘Creeper’, it travelled between terminals of an early iteration of the internet network printing out the message; ‘I’M THE CREEPER. CATCH ME IF YOU CAN.’
- Nasstar
Nasstar enables Toolstation to create a secure, remote working environment
Nasstar is pleased to detail how it has helped tools and building supplies retailer Toolstation adapt and overcome disruption during the global pandemic by delivering a secure remote working solution at speed.
Nasstar sponsors leading female in technology awards for the third consecutive year
Nasstar* is pleased to announce its sponsorship of the ‘Agile Angel’ category at the DevelopHER awards.
Nasstar to acquire KCOM national ICT services business
Nasstar is pleased to announce the acquisition of the national ICT services business of KCOM. The transaction is subject to completion conditions with the sale expected to complete in the coming weeks.
The PCI compliance checklist for remote workers
PCI compliance in the contact centre ensures both customers and your business gets protected from potential risks and non-compliance when taking payments.
10 steps to mitigate email security risks
With the number of public email security risks, hacks, and misfires, you’re not the only person wondering “Is it time to reduce reliance on email?”
Do I need a managed service provider?
Your server room is clogged up, you’ve got support tickets coming out of your ears, and you need help. If you’re at the point where you’re asking “Do I need a managed service provider?” then the answer is likely yes.
Creation of the Nasstar Group
GCI becomes ‘Nasstar’ and Modality Systems simplified to ‘Modality’ in a group-wide rebrand for one of the UK’s largest independent suppliers of managed services.
- Data & AI
Self service and automation: Everything you need to know
Five minutes with Brad Semp, Sales Director, Specialist Solutions at Nasstar as he discusses self-service and automation.
Nasstar
Content Team
Should you outsource your IT support function?
Outsourcing key business functions is not a new concept, but the business case for outsourcing IT support has never been more compelling.
Nasstar offers OneConsultation video collaboration platform free to UK public sector for one month
Powered by Microsoft Teams, OneConsultation enabled nearly 350,000 meetings in 2020, providing a vital lifeline for users of healthcare, Police, education, and social services.
Embracing tech to solve breaches and threats
In 2019, we welcomed Shieldpay into our growing customer base on a three-year hosted desktop contract.
How Office 365 integrates with your organisation
Many businesses are moving to Office 365 and currently, over 1.3 million companies use the suite.
When a datacentre isn’t just a datacentre
If you were to craft a wish-list of deliverables a cloud platform might be able to deliver, it would look like this…
Significant enhancements to the AWS Lambda Service
After so many announcements during AWS re:Invent 2020, surrounding one of the company's core serverless components, we asked Nasstar’s very own cloud expert, AWS Ambassador and AWS Technical Practice Lead, Jason Oliver, to try and unpack, simplify and add value to what we understand about the recent updates.
Jason Oliver
Senior Solution Architect & AWS Ambassador
HMRC recognised for delivering the Association of Programme Managements Programme of the Year
Last week, HMRC was recognised for delivering the Association of Programme Management's 'Programme of the Year' for the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS), the Self Employment Income Support Scheme (SEISS), and the Eat Out to Help Out Scheme (EOHO).
Unlocking the potential of Microsoft Copilot and Copilot Studio
At Microsoft Ignite 2024, the company unveiled significant enhancements to Copilot Studio.
Chris Burns
Technical/Solutions Architect
Major enhancements to the AWS contact centre service
With many support staff now working from home, and organisations finding the need to react rapidly to environmental changes, the emergence of cloud contact centres has become prevalent.
Nasstar selected for PCI DSS expertise
Managed Services Provider, Nasstar, is pleased to announce it has successfully been awarded a place on Lot 5 of the new Banking and Finance procurement framework.
How to set up effective SMS campaigns
Conversion is king. But to stand out from competitors, your marketing strategies need to offer incentives and added value that customers just can’t resist.
Nasstar to enable 1000+ employees at APACs leading natural health company to work flexibly
Nasstar* is to enhance Australia-based Blackmores Group’s modern workplace environment by adding telephony to its existing Microsoft Teams environment.
How much of your data is on the dark web?
Whether acquired through malicious hacking or accidental breaches, criminals are always on the lookout for access to different types of company data.
Securing Microsoft O365 against the latest threats
Most recently the UK’s cybercrime agency, the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) uncovered 7,796* different forms of phishing emails linked to Covid-19.
Nasstar becomes first Microsoft partner in the world to attain three Teams advanced specialisations
Nasstar* has become the first Microsoft partner in the world to achieve three advanced specializations in Microsoft Teams.
Nasstar wins ‘Best Managed Security Service’
Nasstar is delighted to announce it has won ‘Best Managed Security Service’ in the highly-prestigious SC Awards Europe.
- Cloud
5 key elements for a successful cloud migration
Cloud migration has become a huge part of taking a business forward as it can improve efficiency and customer satisfaction.
Nasstar
Content Team
- Digital transformation
10 principles for modernising your technology
More businesses are understanding the need to modernise their technology and undertake a digital transformation.
Nasstar
Content Team
What is Microsoft Teams Direct Routing?
If your business is currently using Microsoft Teams, you may have already heard of ‘Microsoft Teams Direct Routing’. But do you know what this service is or how it works?
- Data & AI
How big data plays a role in digital transformation
Big data has changed small and large businesses for the better, as more companies begin to embrace digital transformation.
Why managed security is cost effective
The cyber threat to businesses remains ever-present, leading to organisations investing more in cyber security than ever before.
Nasstar extends OneConsultation virtual conference service to care providers
Last week Nasstar* sent an open letter to all NHS Trusts and NHS Foundation Trusts advising they could trial our virtual conference service OneConsultation free of charge for one month, to swiftly equip them with the tools they need to offer remote consultations.
No charges for 101 non-emergency calls
From April 2020, we're removing our charges for calls to the police non-emergency number.
Nasstar offers OneConsultation to NHS Trusts for free to help fight COVID-19
Nasstar is pleased to announce it will be offering OneConsultation to NHS Trusts for free to help fight the COVID-19 pandemic.
Embracing collaboration with Microsoft Teams
You might think that collaboration in the modern workplace is surplus to requirement with the rise of remote working, but embracing collaboration and finding people who can work with others effectively is now more important than ever.
4 ways law firms can mitigate supply chain risk
A senior Yorkshire police chief recently warned that companies face a new cyber threat from an unlikely source: their cleaners. It transpired that organised crime bosses are seeding insiders into contracting firms so they can physically access IT systems to steal sensitive data. The warnings highlight the importance of choosing the right vendors to do business with, and the potential risks posed by modern supply chains.
Nasstar to work with fintech company Shieldpay
Leading managed service provider, Nasstar, has recently welcomed innovative fintech company, Shieldpay, to its growing customer base on a three-year hosted desktop contract.
Nasstar Crown Commercial Service Framework success
Managed IT Services Provider Nasstar has today announced it has been successfully awarded a place on the Crown Commercial Service's (CCS) RM3808 Network Services 2 Framework.
Flexible, agile or remote working?
Remote working, working from home, agile working, flexible working… these are the broad range of terms and buzz words we’ve all come to hear a lot about.
International arbitration firm adopts Nasstar IT solution
Global arbitration firm Three Crowns LLP has gone live on a hosted desktop solution delivered by managed IT services provider and legal sector specialist, Nasstar.
Nasstar and Whitlock form strategic alliance to fast track Microsoft Teams migration
Whitlock, a leading provider of audiovisual and video collaboration solutions, and Nasstar*, communications and collaboration services specialists, have today announced a strategic alliance to help global enterprises plan, deploy, operate and manage Microsoft Teams and support their existing legacy UC and AV investments.
Celebrating Women in Tech at the DevelopHER Awards 2019
Nasstar* was proud to sponsor the 2019 DevelopHER Agile Award - presented to Keisha McLean, Agile Delivery Manager at Spetrix, on November 27.
Nasstar to deploy cutting-edge contact centre at Animal Friends
Nasstar has today announced it will deploy a modern, cutting-edge Contact Centre for 400 users at Animal Friends, one of the largest pet insurers in the UK.
- Cyber security
Are your employees a cyber security hazard?
Cyber-attacks are on a rocket-like trajectory, with sensitive credentials falling into the hands of cyber-criminals in record numbers.
Changing face of managed services in a cloud contact centre
The world of contact centres is starting to change.
- Digital transformation
Automation is key in a digital world
In today's security landscape it can be challenging to see the wood from the trees; after all, how can you set policies and budgets when you’re unable to see the size of the problem?
Why financial institutions should implement hosted desktops
As technology evolves and software improves, financial institutions are expected to embrace the disruption technology brings.
- Contact centre
Omnichannel customer contact: The proof's in the personalisation
Getting omnichannel customer experience right is a top priority. Customers have grown more demanding and they’ve never had more choice.
Nasstar
Content Team
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